This week’s Midweek with Max opened with an unexpected cameo from the Sacred Waste community. Once the smoke cleared, the engineering team delivered a focused update on core protocol progress. The headline: Hemi Network V2 is merged, socket-compatible, and nearly ready for testnet deployment. The release simplifies node architecture and supports the new PoP miner, which will now connect to TBC instead of BFG. Instructions for node operators will be published soon, and the upgrade is non-breaking for those already running testnet nodes. Following V2 on testnet, the updated PoP payout algorithm will also go live.

Max noted continued progress on ZK provability, emphasizing work toward modular proofs that cover the full Hemi pipeline. This includes ZK proving Bitcoin state transitions, Ethereum consensus state, DA derivations, the EVM state transition function, and HBM precompile calls. The goal is to enable secure, remixable ZK components that other applications can use independently. For example, validating lightweight Ethereum consensus or building more secure Bitcoin light clients. The team also previewed a future upgrade to the PoP system that will publish Ethereum consensus data to Bitcoin to prevent forged ZK-based attacks, strengthening crosschain security assumptions.

Operationally, Hemi is transitioning its bug bounty program from HackerOne to Bugcrowd, with the new program expected to appear imminently. VBK claim tooling is also nearing release. On incentives, the team reiterated that incentive “season” structures are being phased out in favor of direct liquidity incentives through Merkle campaigns, with more robust reward systems in development.

The OG role remains in progress as the Discord wallet-linking system is finalized, with deployment expected soon. Work continues on multi-claim improvements and future merging mechanics for veHEMI NFT positions, though merging remains complex due to differing lock schedules. Upcoming APY visibility will reflect existing protocol fees but will change dynamically as new decentralized components launch.

Engineering closed with clarifications on RPC rate limits. Starting December 1, limits will increase meaningfully per-IP to encourage protocols to use third-party RPC providers rather than Hemi’s public endpoints. January will bring further reductions as part of a phased shift toward more appropriate infrastructure.

The team reiterated the purpose of testnet: instability is intentional, inherited from Bitcoin Testnet 3 and its difficulty bomb. Plans exist to migrate to Bitcoin Testnet 4 for a more stable environment, especially for HBK experimentation. Security procedures across the stack remain an active priority, including dependency scanning, container hardening, secure CI/CD, comprehensive testing, and a responsive bug bounty program.

Community updates included the launch of new items in the Hemi Merch store, upcoming contests, Discord game sessions, and a planned Hippo mascot design contest. And a reminder, as always, official Hemi support is only on Discord, not Telegram.